Music – Composition Technologies

Category Archives: brass

After a decade of exhaustive sampling, and four years spent capturing our finest brass players, Spitfire are proud to present Symphonic Brass. It is a definitive collection of orchestral brass recorded at Air Studios, London. With a broad selection of different section sizes from solo to large groups of Trumpets, Horns & Trombones to featured instruments; with usual suspects such as Bass Trombones & Tubas, to zeitgeist weaponry such as Cimbassi, Contrabass Trombones and a new Contrabass Tuba.Originally released in modules as part of the BML (British Modular Library) project, Spitfire Symphonic Brass is a rationalisation of these numerous, deep sampled components, along with many improvements, including a host of new articulations and new instruments. We’ve created a more affordable entry into what we believe to be the finest orchestral brass library available today.To justify these claims we cite this small list of contributing factors:• British brass players are arguably the best in the world.• Spitfire has cherry picked the best of the best.• Recorded to tape at Air Studios via an unparalleled signal path.• Deepest articulation, dynamic layer, round robin set of brass samples we’ve yet to see• Produced by an award winning team of composers, producers & engineers.• Presented in an intuitive interface based on a decade of award-winning sampling experience and a quarter century as working composers.With playing styles from heart rending choral work to blistering lip bleed material. Whether you’re an aspiring John Williams or a zealous Hans Zimmer-ite we have no doubt that their favourite players will find favour with you!

Background

From its collieries, through its jazz clubs, amongst the hundreds of pit bands, sitting proudly abreast at the Proms in the Albert Hall, through symphonic concerts to countless chamber spaces; The British Brass tradition runs through our country and culture like spinal fluid. Spitfire set about creating a definitive showcase of British Brass talent, a doomsday time capsule of this fine tradition.Whilst there are many great orchestras around the world, there’s just something about British brass that keeps composers coming back, sometimes under the cover of darkness to record illicit “overdubbing” sessions in London. It is the rare combination of the colliery, jazz, West End and classical traditions that produce this swaggering melting pot of rarefied individuals.Having already recorded a full brass choir for the infamous Spitfire ‘bespoke’ range. Paul, Christian, Stanley and the Spitfire team set about a longer term project to capture this spirit, the spine of our musical culture, for the world to share and celebrate.

Features

• A broad band covering solo, chamber, symphonic and cinematic instrument groups• Traditional to modern ‘zeitgeist’ selection of instruments from Trumpets, Horns & Bones to Cimbassi & Contrabass Instruments• Super deep sampled, many dynamic layers and round robins• Most comprehensive selection of articulations, and additional techniques available today• Entry level core pack has full functionality of BML offering• Core pack shipped with 3 distinct mic positions C(lose), T(ree), A(mbient)• New add on pack coming soon with additional mics and mixesNEW IN SPITFIRE SYMPHONIC BRASS• In addition to all articulations in BML, new ‘Volume 2’ articulations across the band.• In addition to all instruments in BML, new members including Contrabass Tuba and solo trombones.• New, more intuitive interface design• New rationalised file architecture will allow for improvements and enhancements in the future• Many tweaks, and performance / musical improvements

GUIs

The Overview Panel

Gives you a quick and easy way to access, view and load the different articulations, mic mixes and essential controller functions which you can then re-assign to suit your workflow.

General Controls Panel

A deeper but still simple UI panel that allows you to tweak the general settings. How many round robins you would like and how you would like them to behave. How would you like memory to be organised alongside pitch options and how velocity works.

The Ostinatum

Quite simply a little inspiration machine. Not quite an arpeggiator, not quite a sequencer. This intuitive device allows you to build up complex patterns that react to your playing to achieve wild systems results tantalising Zimmeresque tension beds or cheeky multi-tonguing effects!

Rinascimento features 3 bowed string instruments, 2 brass instruments, 8 reed instruments, 5 recorders of different sizes, 2 other kind of flutes, 7 kind of lute instruments (with a auto-strumming engine), 5 percussion, harpsichord, virginal, a positive organ and a complete organ with 10 registers. All the non-polyphonic instruments feature full sustained legato transitions and staccato and there is a special and unique scripting engine for some complex instruments like the hurdy gurdy, the percussion, the organ or the lutes.